Stairway Column with Integral Ventilation

ABSTRACT

A stairway column with an integral ventilation duct. The present system includes a housing having sidewalls forming an interior volume with an open upper end. An opening is positioned along one of the sidewalls, where a plurality of stairs begin, leading from a bottom of the housing to the open upper end. A ventilation duct is placed within the interior volume of the housing beneath the stairs, extending from an intake aperture positioned at the bottom of the housing to an outlet aperture disposed at the open upper end. A fan may be installed within the ventilation duct for carrying air from the intake to the output. Additionally, one or more of the stairs may include drawers installed within the riser of the stair. In some embodiments, shelves and cavities for appliances are formed within one or more of the sidewalls, offering economical storage without requiring additional space.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/313,938 filed on Mar. 28, 2016. The above identified patent application is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety to provide continuity of disclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to stairway columns. More specifically, the present invention relates to stairway columns having stairs with drawers and an integral ventilation duct.

Many individuals spend some of their time living in quarters that have minimal space. Such spaces include trailers, campers and small living spaces known as tiny houses which can be enjoyed as a vacation home or a permanent dwelling. Tiny houses are living spaces that may or may not be portable, and offer a full range of living amenities enclosed within a small footprint.

Due to the constraints of such spaces, designers must optimize the efficiency of how the area is used. In order to maximize the amount of usable space, many elements of the tiny house or trailer must have multiple functions. For example, a lounge area with couches or benches can double as a dining room with the help of a nearby foldable table surface.

Many of these tiny houses provide two levels of living space. However, it can be difficult to efficiently design a stair case that will comfortably lead from a first level to a second level while maximizing space efficiency. Traditional stairs configured in a straight layout require a long footprint in order to allow for a sufficient amount of rise without having stair risers that are uncomfortably tall. Furthermore, supplemental usage of the space taken up by the stairs is often limited to drawers. Additionally, the second level can become stuffy and hot if not properly ventilated, which can be particularly true in warmer months. Installing a fan or air conditioning unit can take up precious room. Accordingly, a device offering the ability to move from a lower level to an upper level within a limited area while maximizing space as well as offering an integral method of ventilation is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of stairway columns now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a stairway column wherein the same can be utilized for providing convenience for the user when attempting to maximize usable space within a limited area. The present system includes a housing having sidewalls forming an interior volume with an open upper end. An opening is positioned along one of the sidewalls, where a plurality of stairs begin, leading from a bottom of the housing to the open upper end. A ventilation duct is placed within the interior volume of the housing beneath the stairs, extending from an intake aperture positioned at the bottom of the housing to an outlet aperture disposed at the open upper end. A fan may be installed within the ventilation duct, carrying air from the bottom of the first level of a small dwelling to the second level. Additionally, one or more of the stairs may include drawers installed within the riser of the stair. In some embodiments, shelves and cavities for appliances are formed within one or more sidewalls, offering economical storage without requiring additional space.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the characteristic features of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manner in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.

FIG. 1 shows a front perspective view of the stairway column with integral ventilation.

FIG. 2 shows a rear perspective view of the stairway column with integral ventilation, showing the ventilation duct.

FIG. 3 shows a top view of a first floor of a dwelling with the stairway column with integral ventilation.

FIG. 4 shows a top view of a second floor of a dwelling with the stairway column with integral ventilation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the stairway column with integral ventilation. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered to be limiting in any respect.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown a front perspective view of the stairway column with integral ventilation. The stairway column with integral ventilation comprises a housing 10 having sidewalls 12, 14, 16, 17 forming an interior volume 21 with an open upper end 20. An opening 23 is positioned along a front sidewall 14, extending from a bottom of the housing 10 to the open upper end 20. In some embodiments, the housing 10 forms a rectangular prism, with a first pair of parallel sidewalls 12, 16 and a second pair of parallel sidewalls 14, 17.

A plurality of stairs 18 are disposed within the interior volume 21, leading from the bottom of the housing 10 at to the opening 23 to the open upper end 20. In some embodiments, the stairs 18 are positioned to form a curved stairway. For example, the bottom stair and a top stair may be positioned adjacent to a single sidewall 14, such that the entrance at the bottom of the stairway is open toward the same direction as the exit at the top of the stairway. The space above the stairs 18 forms a stairway corridor, through which a user may easily traverse.

An alternate embodiment of the stairway column with integral ventilation includes one or more drawers 19 installed within one or more of the plurality of stairs 18. The drawers 19 may be installed within the riser portion 27 of the stairs 18. Thus, a user can use the space occupied by the stairs 18 as easily accessible storage space. Additionally, some embodiments of the stairway column with integral ventilation include one or more shelves 22 embedded within one or more of the sidewalls 16. The shelves 22 may extend into the interior volume 21 below a portion of the plurality of stairs 18, such that the shelves 22 do not take up any usable space within the stairway corridor.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown a rear perspective view of the stairway column with integral ventilation, showing the ventilation duct. A duct 30 is disposed within the interior volume 21 and is operably connected to an intake aperture 34 at a first end and an outlet aperture 32 at a second end. The intake aperture 34 may be positioned at the bottom of the housing 10, and the outlet aperture 32 may be disposed at the open upper end 20. The ventilation duct 30 enables air to flow from a first floor to a second floor of an interior space. This allows for improved air circulation in small quarters by allowing cooler or fresher air to flow from a first level to a second level which may have less natural ventilation.

Further, a fan 36 may be provided and installed within the ventilation duct 30. The fan 36 is operably connected to a power source such as a wall outlet or battery and is configured to move air from one end of the duct 30 to the opposing end thereof. In some embodiments, the fan 36 is configured to move the air from the bottom intake aperture 34 to the output aperture 32. This configuration is particularly desirable in warmer weather, as warm air generally rises. Circulating the cooler air from a lower level of a limited living space to an upper level allows for efficient cooling of the space without the need for intrusive and unwieldy fans or air conditioning units.

Cavities 24 may be disposed within one or more of the sidewalls 17 of the housing 10, where the cavities 24 are configured to fit various items therein. This can allow a user to install convenient appliances, such as a dishwasher 29 or a microwave 28, within the housing 10 of the stairway column with integral ventilation. This arrangement provides for additional usable living space that the appliances 28, 29 would otherwise occupy. The appliances 28, 29 may be operably connected to a power source such as a generator or wall outlet via wiring or cable that run through a lower portion of the interior volume 21 of the stairway column with integral ventilation. In this arrangement, the wiring is disposed beneath the stairs 18, and thus may be hidden from view.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, there is shown a top view of a first floor of a dwelling with the stairway column with integral ventilation and a top view of a second floor of a dwelling with the stairway column with integral ventilation, respectively. The housing 10 of the stairway column with integral ventilation may be installed within a small two story living space, referred to as a “tiny home.” The bottom-most stair 43 is positioned on the first floor 41, while the top-most stair 44 and open upper end 20 are positioned on the second floor 42. In a typical living configuration, the kitchen 45, living room space 47 and bathroom 46 are located on the first floor 41, while sleeping quarters 49 are located on the second floor 42. Thus, the stairway column with integral ventilation enables a user to easily climb from the general living area to the bedroom without requiring an excessive footprint. Further, the storage space and cavities for appliances may be positioned adjacent to the kitchen space 45, allowing a user to utilize the additional functionality offered by the stairway column with integral ventilation without the need for additional room, which is at a premium in such small spaces.

It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown and described in various embodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention. 

I claim: 1) A stairway column with integral ventilation, comprising: a housing comprising sidewalls forming an interior volume having an open upper end, wherein an opening is disposed along a sidewall; a plurality of stairs leading from a bottom of the housing adjacent to the opening to the open upper end; a ventilation duct disposed within the interior volume, extending from an intake aperture positioned on a sidewall at the bottom of the housing to an outlet aperture disposed at the open upper end. 2) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 1, wherein the housing comprises four sidewalls, the four sidewalls including a first parallel pair of sidewalls positioned perpendicular to a second parallel pair of sidewalls. 3) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 2, wherein the housing forms a rectangular prism. 4) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 1, further comprising one or more drawers disposed with a riser portion of each of the plurality of stairs. 5) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 1, wherein the plurality of stairs are positioned to form curved stairway. 6) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 5, wherein a bottom stair and a top stair are positioned adjacent to the same sidewall. 7) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 1, further comprising one or more shelves disposed within one of the sidewalls of the housing. 8) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 1, further comprising a cavity disposed within a sidewall, the cavity adapted to support electronic appliances therein. 9) The stairway column with integral ventilation of claim 1, further comprising a fan disposed within the ventilation duct, wherein the fan is configured to move air from the intake aperture to the outlet aperture. 